the country´s length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna

People information

Population:

5,548,702

note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 42.3% (male 1,177,141/female 1,169,321)

15-64 years: 55.1% (male 1,485,621/female 1,570,117)

65 years and over: 2.6% (male 59,870/female 86,632) (2006 est.)

Median age:

total: 18.3 years

male: 17.8 years

female: 18.7 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

2.72% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:

37.01 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:

9.83 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female

total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 60.63 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 68.17 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 52.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 57.42 years

male: 55.41 years

female: 59.49 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:

4.96 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

4.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

110,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

10,000 (2003 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Togolese (singular and plural)

adjective: Togolese

Ethnic groups:

African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1%

Religions:

indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20%

Languages:

French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north)

chief of state: President Faure GNASSINGBE (since 6 February 2005); note - Gnassingbe EYADEMA died on 5 February 2005 and was succeeded by his son, Faure GNASSINGBE; popular elections in April 2005 validated the succession

note: two opposition parties boycotted the election, the Union of the Forces for Change and the Action Committee for Renewal

Judicial branch:

Court of Appeal or Cour d´Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Political parties and leaders:

Juvento [Monsilia DJATO]; Movement of the Believers of Peace and Equality or MOCEP; Rally for the Support for Development and Democracy or RSDD [Harry OLYMPIO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [Faure GNASSINGBE]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Gagou KOKOU]

five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

Economical information

Economy - overview:

This small, sub-Saharan economy is heavily dependent on both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported. Cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings, with cotton being the most important cash crop. Togo is the world´s fourth-largest producer of phosphate. The government´s decade-long effort, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to implement economic reform measures, encourage foreign investment, and bring revenues in line with expenditures has moved slowly. Progress depends on follow-through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress toward legislative elections, and continued support from foreign donors. Togo is working with donors to write a PRGF that could eventually lead to a debt reduction plan.